News

In a move to expand opportunities for creative “makers” at smaller and emerging greeting card companies, the Greeting Card Association has agreed to collaborate with Reed Expositions, producer of BookExpo, to offer its popular “GCA Village” all-in exhibit option to new exhibitors at UnBound, “a show within a show” at BookExpo. In addition, GCA members can exhibit independently in their own booth space at preferred rates for GCA members.

This will be the first time the GCA Village concept, first launched in 2017 for GCA members exhibiting at Emerald Expositions’ National Stationery Show, will expand to an additional show. The GCA’s integration of new trade show-based services into the association’s membership offerings has been swift, with the introduction of the new Noted: The Greeting Card Expo, coming to Brooklyn, NY in May of 2019, and the new collaboration with Reed.

“This is an exciting next step for what has been a very successful concept”, notes George White, Vice President for the GCA. “We understand the GCA Village’s appeal and recognize the need to offer GCA members options for exploring new business opportunities at new and existing shows while doing what we can to limit some of the concerns regarding booth logistics and expense. The new UnBound opportunity is particularly of interest due to the strong growth of greeting card sales in independent book retailers in recent years.”

The GCA is also thrilled to announce that Reed Expositions has been approved as a member of the Greeting Card Association. “Their commitment to the future of this industry is clear”, noted Christy Kaprosy, President of the GCA. “Reed Expositions appreciates the recent growth in our shared markets, and is looking forward to helping us spread the word about the valuable opportunities that lay ahead for all greeting card and stationery companies and their retailer partners.”

Reed has announced the launch of “UnBound” at BookExpo, a curated space with an assortment of diverse non-book and lifestyle suppliers and service providers, with products that include journals, greeting cards, games and specialty toys, tea towels, art materials, calendars, candles and much more. UnBound will be home to the GCA Village, and access to UnBound is included with every BookExpo ™ registration. UnBound will run from May 29-31 at the Jacob Javits Center in downtown New York, NY. Reed will offer GCA members exhibiting at both Noted and Unbound, the added benefit of shipping boxed products from Noted to BookExpo, along with storage, at no charge.

“We are delighted to bring GCA members a targeted and synergistic business development opportunity through UnBound at BookExpo in 2019 and thereby deliver the best quality and range of greeting card designs to our booksellers and museum store attendees to discover,” said Patti Stracher-Lee, event director.

For more information on UnBound, please contact Patti Stracher-Lee at [email protected].